Artificial tooth.



J. E. EVANS.

ARTIFICIAL TOOTH.

APPLIUATION FILED N011?, 1909.

969,050. Patented Aug. 30, 1910.

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, oNrrnn sTArns 'PATENT mais@o JOHN E. EVANS,

OF LIMA, OHIO.

ARTIFICIAL TOOTH.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Jol-IN E. EvANs,a citizen of the United States,residing at Lima, in the county of Allen and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Artificial Teeth; and Ido declare the following -to be a full, clear, and exact description ofthe invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to artificial teeth, such as are secured inposition by a bridge.

The object of the invention is to provide an artificial tooth for use inbridge work having an improved construction of cusp or masticatingsurface and means whereby the latter is secured to the body yof thetooth and the teeth secured together with about onefourth to one-half asmuch gold as is necessary under the present system of bridgework.

IVith the foregoing and other objects in View, the invention consists ofcertain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement ofparts, as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out int-he appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings F igure l is a perspective view of adetached tooth constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is asimilar View showing the lining and cusp separated from and in positionto be engaged with the end of the tooth. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectionalView of the same. Fig. a is a rear view of the completed tooth. Fig. 5is a perspective View taken from t-he lower end of a tooth showing thelining or backing arranged thereon before the cusp is soldered thereto.Fig. 6 is a perspective View of a modified form of the tooth showing thesame provided with but one lining holding pin. Fig. 7 is a side view ofanother modified form of the tooth.

In this improved bridge Itooth the gold is placed exactly where thestress is exerted and not on the lingual side of the tooth, which latterattachment is undesirable as the porcelain is easily broken loose fromthe gold should the tooth bite on some hard substance. As shown, thistooth comprises a body portion which is preferably formed of porcelainand has `the usual buccal or cheek surface l, lingual or rear surface 2,and occlusial or masticating surface 3. The porcelain body portion ofthe tooth has preferably arranged therein two small verticallySpecicaton of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 17, 1909.

Serial No. 528,461.

disposed pins 4, formed of platinum or other non-fusible metal, whichproject through the lower face of thetooth for a purpose to bedescribed.

Secured to the lower end of the porcelain tooth is a backing 5, which isformed-of platinum or gold. The backing 5 is burnished down against theend of the tooth and is secured by the projecting ends of the platinumpins 4, which extend through said backing and are clenched against thesame. Adapted to be secured to the backing 5 is a metal tip or cusp 6,which is formed to correspond to the masticating surface of the tooth towhich it is to be applied and said cusp 0r tip is secured to the backing5 by Patented Aug. so, 1910.

gold solder 7, which is owed into the V- shaped space between the cuspor tip and the backing 5 on the end of the tooth, as shown. By thussecuring the tip or cusp to the end of the tooth, the cusp and thesolder will appear in the finished product, as one piece of gold, andthe teeth may thereby be fastened together and at the same time to thecrowned teeth (not shown) which are used as abutments. A toothconstructed as herein shown and described will be strong and durable andwill have the appearance of a natural tooth with a gold crown.

It will beobserved that the gold on the end of the tooth is not thickerthan a dime at the buccal side and at t-he lingual side it is notthicker than a silver dollar. The gold solder 7 which fastens the tip orcusp 6 to the backing 5 also serves to fastenthe teeth together and tothe crowns (not shown) ,which engage the teeth at the opposite sides ofthe space to be bridged and which serve as the usual abutments.

It will also be observed that this improved tooth is thicker from thebuccal to the lingual surface than the teeth formerly used whichprovides for the teeth being soldered to the crown tooth at the pointwhere the fastening sustains the greatest stress, to wit: at themasticating surface of the crown tooth, and all of the gold which is atthe present time flowed back of the bridge tooth on the lingual side, iseliminated, whereby a great saving of gold is effected.

The first requirement of a bridge is strength and this constructionprovides great strength in that the attachment is made at the greatestpoint of resistance where the crown is heaviest.

While I have herein described the tooth as provided with two backingfastening pins 5, I may, if desired, employ but one pin for this purposeas shown at-8 in Fig. 6 of the drawings.

In Fig. 7 of the drawing is shown a slightly modified form of the toothin which an offset or projection 8 is formed on the lower end of thetooth at the buccal or cheek surface and forms a continuation orext-ension of said surface. The otfset or projection 8 forms a shieldfor the connection which secures the gold cusp to the backing on the endof the tooth, and protects the same from a blow thereby greatlyincreasing the strength of the tooth.

It will be noted that in the form of the tooth shown in Fig. 7, verylittle of the gold solder is presented to view on the outer side of thetooth.

The term cusp as used in dental phraseology is applied to the point orbiting end of the tooth.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, the construction and operation of the inventionwill be readily understood without requiring a more extendedexplanation.

Various changes in the form, proportion and the minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to without departing from the principle orsacrificing any of the advantages of the invention, as defined in theappended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is l. An articialtooth, comprising a porcelain body portion, a pin embedded in said bodyportion, and depending below the lower face of the tooth, a metalbacking secured to the lower end of said tooth by said pin and a goldcusp secured to said backing.

2. An artificial tooth, comprising a body portion, a pin embedded insaid tooth and projecting below the lower end of the tooth, a metalbacking arranged on said lower end and secured by the projecting end ofsaid pin, a cusp secured to said backing by a gold solder connection,whereby the cusp and the solder will appear as one piece of gold on theend of the tooth.

8. An artificial tooth, comprising a body witnesses.

JOHN E. EVANS. Vitnesses:

EUGENE T. LIPPINCOTT, LEETA Huss.

